Here we go.
Interested to see how Chicago's lines play out. At first glance, you'd think it would be a no-brainer to put Chara out against Sharp-Toews-Hossa, but the size of the Bickell-Handzus combination could be tough to deal with. Last series, they put Chara and Seidenberg out against the bigger Malkin and Neal and let Ference and Boychuk, along with the Bergeron line, deal with the speed/quickness of Crosby. Still, you have to match up your best vs. their best, so it looks like Chara-Seidenberg will try to deal with the Toews line first and foremost. All I know is that they have to get the Bergeron line out against the Toews line as much as possible. Marchand could drive Toews nuts this series.
Chicago has a great group of defensemen that can all move the puck, but it'll be interesting to see if Boston's size and physicality down low can wear them down in the defensive zone. Every single one of Boston's top 6 forwards excel at cycling the puck down low, and, outside of Seguin, all their bottom 6 forwards are pretty damn good at it as well. Just have to try to bottle Chicago up in their own zone as much as possible this series, and be wary of their quick transition game. Boston's D are usually really involved on offense and love to pinch, but they have to be especially careful against a team that thrives on breakouts with their speed and puck-moving ability of their D.
Obviously the goal is to win every game, but I'd be happy going back to Boston with a split to take away home-ice. Overall, I'm saying Boston in 7.
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